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The Alliance for Smart Healthcare Excellence Collaborates with Zscaler on Cybersecurity Development

In a significant advancement for the healthcare sector, the Alliance for Smart Healthcare Excellence has announced a partnership with Zscaler, Inc. to spearhead the development of the Zero Trust Maturation Model (ZTMM). This innovative framework aims to bolster the cybersecurity defenses of healthcare organizations, safeguarding patient data and operations from emerging cyber threats.

The Growing Need for Robust Cybersecurity

The healthcare industry is currently facing an alarming convergence of risks. Cyber threats, such as ransomware and phishing attacks, have become commonplace. Moreover, the introduction of vulnerabilities through third-party software and supply chains have emerged as critical security concerns. As hospitals and health systems integrate advanced smart care technologies and Artificial Intelligence (AI) into their operations, the necessity for robust cybersecurity measures has never been greater. With patient safety at risk, merely adhering to compliance-driven security standards is insufficient.

The Zero Trust approach advocates for a stringent stance towards cyber threats, necessitating uncompromising security measures that extend across all facets of healthcare IT systems. The ZTMM provides a structured strategy for healthcare leaders, allowing them to evaluate their existing capabilities, prioritize necessary investments, and transition towards a state of unwavering cyber resilience.

An Integrated Approach to Cybersecurity Maturity

The ZTMM framework serves to assist healthcare organizations in achieving two primary objectives: modernizing critical infrastructure and enabling the responsible deployment of digital health innovations. By collaborating with Zscaler, the Alliance ensures that healthcare providers can follow a structured, vendor-neutral roadmap toward advancing their cybersecurity maturity.

Tamer Baker, Healthcare CTO at Zscaler, emphasized the urgency of adopting a Zero Trust approach:
“Zero trust is not just a philosophy, it is a necessity in today's healthcare environment. While there is a great deal of confusion and marketecture surrounding the concept of zero trust, ZTMM will serve as a clear and actionable model to help healthcare leaders cut through the noise.”

This framework is also noteworthy as it is the first extension of the Smart Hospital Maturation Model (SHMM) introduced by the Alliance in 2024. While SHMM concentrates on guiding hospitals through digital transformation, ZTMM focuses on delivering a broad roadmap for cybersecurity maturity, applicable to both fully modernized smart hospitals and those reliant on legacy systems.

Collaborative Effort for Greater Security

Steve Lieber, CEO of the Alliance, stated,
“The Alliance is grateful for Zscaler's sponsorship of this important initiative. Their support allows us to bring together experts from across healthcare and technology to create a vendor-neutral cybersecurity roadmap leveraging zero trust principles, urgently needed by hospitals and health systems everywhere.”

For Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) and other leaders in healthcare security, more information about the ZTMM initiative can be obtained by contacting Lorren Pettit from the Alliance.

The ZTMM is set to be unveiled during ViVE 2026 as a new standard for healthcare cybersecurity maturity, representing a pivotal step toward securing the future of healthcare operations against cyber threats.

About the Alliance for Smart Healthcare Excellence

The Alliance for Smart Healthcare Excellence is a vendor-neutral organization dedicated to promoting smart care technologies in the healthcare sector. By developing maturation models, benchmarking studies, and thought leadership initiatives, the Alliance empowers providers, investors, and technology partners with frameworks that encourage innovation and resilience in healthcare delivery. Discover more about their initiatives at smarthospital.ai.